Slack-adjuster for brakes.



No.740,814. PATENTED 0616,1903.

E. E. GROWBLL.

SLACK ADJUSTER FOR BRAKES APPLIOATIOHPILED FEB. 28, 1903.

H0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Mihwooco I EZ: C 'OWG/ZZ W r I, j v I I I I qlfc'znuao No.- 740,814.. PATENTED 00w. a, 1903. E. E. OROWELL.

SLACK ADJUSTER FOR -BRAKES.,

APPLIOATION mum r113. 2a, 1903.

.30 Kev n. z sums-sum z bodying the invention.

EDYVARD E.

Patented October 6, 1903.

oRowELL, or WATERVILLE, MAINE, ASSIGNOR or ONE-HALF TO JAMES H. KELLEHER, on PORTLAND, MAINE.

SLACK-ADJUSTER FOR BRAKES.

SPEGIFIGATIQN forming part of Letters PatentNo. 740,814, dated October 6, 1903. Application filed February 28, 1908. Serial lilo. 146,546. (No model.)

T000135 whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD E. CRownLL, a citizen of the United States, residing at \Vaterville, in the county of Kennebec and State of Maine, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Slack-Adj usters for Brakes, of which the following is a specification.

Brakes designed for rolling-stock, such as railway-cars, have the brakebeams of a truck connected for simultaneous action. Hence the wear upon the brake-shoes results in con-' siderable slack or lost motion of the brakesetting connections.

This invention provides novel means for automatically taking up the slack as the brake-shoes wear, thereby maintaining the connections in a given condition with reference to the brake-beams, with the result that the brakes are positively set at all times upon a substantially like movementof the brakesetting device, such as the staif, lever, or other contrivance.

For a full description of the invention and the merits thereof and also to acquire a knowledge of the details of construction of the means for effecting the result, reference is to be had to the following description and drawings hereto attached.

While the essential and characteristic features of the invention are susceptible of modification, still the preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a longitudinal section of a care truck provided with a brake mechanism cm- Fig. 2 is a plan view of the take-up mechanism on a larger scale.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section-on the line Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sec I signed for railway-brakes, it is shown in contion and comprises bolster 1, frame 2, and

connected to the opposite end of one of the 1 brake-levers,'as 7,,and is adapted to have the power applied thereto for setting the brakes when 1 the same are to be applied. The end of the other brake-lever, as 8, is connected with a compensating bar 11 by means of a rod or like part 12. I

The take-upmechanism is applied to a frame 13, which is firmly attached to a convenient portion of the truck-frame, as the bolster 1, said frame consisting, essentially, of a casting or metal structure. [11 is slidably mounted in the frame 13, so as to move longitudinally therein, and is provided. with teeth which are in meshing relation with a gearwheel14,secured to or forming a part of shaft 15, journaled transversely of frame'13 and provided at its ends with ratchet-wheels 16 and 17. A take-up bar 18 is slidably mounted with reference to the frame 13 and is movable parallel with the compensating bar and is preferably held in place by guides 19,which are bolted or otherwise detachably connected to the frame 13 to admit of ready removal of the bar 18 when required for any purpose. A stop 20 is applied to or forms a part of bar 18 and is arranged to play between the guides 19, whereby said take-up bar has a limited longitudinal movement. The take'up bar is The compensating bar ing-rod 10 by flexible connections 21, which admit of independent movement of the operating-rod without attracting the take-up bar under normal conditions. A spring 22 connects one end of take-up bar 18 with the bolster or other convenient portion of the frame, so as to hold said bar 18 in a normal position. A pawl'23 is applied to the take-up bar and is adapted to cooperate with the teeth of the ratchet-wheel 17. This pawl 23 is held in engagement with the teeth of the ratchet- Wheel by means of spring 24 and is provided With an extension to form a finger piece, whereby the pawl may be operated by hand at any time to effect disengagement thereof from ratchet-wheel17. Under normal conditions a pull upon rod 10 to set the brakes will not effect or cause movement of bar 18. When the brake-shoes become worn or other parts of the system loosened through wear or other cause, so as to produce slack in the brake-setting connections, the rod 10 when operated receives a greater movement and carries the take-up bar with it for a part of its movement corresponding tothe resulting slack incident to wear,with the result that the pawl 23 rides upon the teeth of ratchet-wheel 17. When rod 10 is released to permit unsetting of the brakes, the take-up bar 18is returned to a normal position by action of the spring 22, thereby causing the shaft 15 to turn and move the compensating bar 11 a distance to take up the aforementioned slack. To prevent backward rotation of shaft 15, a detent-pawl15 is provided and cooperates with the teeth of the ratchet-wheel 16.

While it is preferred to have compensating bar 11 rigid, yet in some instances it may be desirable and of advantage to have it flexible, so as to turn down out of the way. A construction of this kind is shown in Fig. 7, in which the bar 11 is composed of jointed parts or sections.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is 1. In a brake system, and in combination with cooperating brake-levers, an automatic take-up mechanism comprising a compensating and a take-up bar slidably mounted in parallel relation and connected with the respeetive brake-levers, a shaft, means for preventing backward rotation of said shaft, a gear-Wheel secured to the shaft and in meshing relation with teeth of said compensating bar, a ratchet-Wheel secured to said shaft, and a pawl applied to the take-up bar for cooperation with said ratchet-wheel, substantiall y as set forth.

2. In a brake-system, and in combination with cooperating brake-levers, an automatic take-up mechanism comprisinga compensating and a take-up bar slidably mounted in parallel relation, means connecting the compensating bar with one of the brake-levers,

an operating-rodconnected to the other brakelever,loose connections between opposite ends of the take-up bar and the operating-rod to admit of the latter having determinate movement under normal conditions without imparting any movement to the take-up bar, a shaft, means for preventing backward rotation of said shaft, a gear-wheel applied to the shaft and in mesh with teeth of the compensating bar, a ratchet wheel secured to said shaft, and a pawl applied to the take-up bar to effect rotation of said shaft under abnormal conditions to automatically take up any slack in the brake connections, substantially as specified.

3. An automatic take-up mechanism for brake systems, the same comprising a frame, slidably-mounted compensating and take-up bars, a shaft, means for preventing backward rotation of the said. shaft, a gear-wheel secured to said shaft and in mesh with teeth of the compensating bar, a ratchet-wheel applied to said shaft, a pawl carried by the takeup bar and cooperating with said ratchetwheel, and a spring exerting force upon said take-up bar, substantially as set forth.

4. A take-up mechanism for a system of brakes, the same comprising a frame, a shaft journaled to the frame and provided with a ratchet-wheel and a gear-wheel, means for preventing backward rotation of said shaft, a toothed compensating bar longitudinally movable in the frame and in mesh with said gear-wheel, guides applied to the frame, a take-up bar slidably mounted in said guides, a stop applied to said take-up bar and adapted to operate between the guides to limit the longitudinal movement of said take-up bar, and a pawl carried by the take-up bar and in mesh with said ratchet-wheel, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

EDWARD E. CROWELL.

IOC. 

